Chapter 22
What's the difference between Gossip and Scandal? So glad you asked, UES4ever. Anyone can commit a minor indiscretion and generate a day's worth of buzz, but in order for gossip to birth a true scandal, it requires the right person to be in the wrong place.
Take one "It" girl on a pedestal. Add a crowd eager to see her fall and give them the means to knock her down.
Blair was in a place that she hadn't been in quite some time. The place was called denial and she had been there for the past two weeks. It had been two weeks since the swimming pool incident and by this time everyone had seemed to have moved passed it and life was going back to normal. Even Nate and Chuck had been seen spending a bit more time together, slowly working their way back to how they were before Cotillion. Things with Chuck and Blair were still going strong and according to anyone that was asked, Blair's life was perfect.
And Blair would agree, with the exception of her boyfriend still not saying those three words, eight letters to her yet, and last week she made the added mistake of telling Serena that her period was late. Serena automatically jumped to the wrong conclusion of pregnancy despite Blair's constant attempts to explain to her blonde best friend that she was just stressed out with S.A.T.'s and school. She couldn't possibly be pregnant. She's a Waldorf!
But ever since Serena planted the thought in Blair's head, it never left. Blair found herself avoiding Chuck, on the off chance that Serena opened her big mouth and told him of her supposed "suspicions". Blair was becoming more frazzled by the minute to the point that she was snapping at everyone who annoyed her even a little. Fortunately, thanks to her social standing in school, she could get away with it and not be questioned, like today.
Blair sat perched on the highest step of the MET, surrounded by her minions: Kati and Iz a step below her, Penelope and Hazel, who were both juniors, on the second set of steps below her, and finally Elise, Blair's newest freshman recruit after she first dismissed little Jenny Humphrey. These girls were the top in the school's social order and where they sat on these steps in regards to their Queen, showed their rank according to Blair. The closer you were to the Queen, the more your opinions counted in regards to almost everything, but don't be led to a false sense of security because the Queen had final say and if she didn't like your opinion, you could easily be demoted for punishment, or worse, dismissed like Jenny Humphrey.
Kati and Iz were discussing a designer that they all saw in Vogue over the weekend, and Blair was more than happy to let the conversation go on as long as it was as far away from the Gossip Girl blast as possible. She couldn't believe that Serena would do something so stupid as to get something like that in the light of day. Blair swore it was like the blonde never thought her actions through! Blair's minions seemed to have taken cue from Blair and didn't even mention it when Blair arrived. Serena was Blair's best friend and therefore was off limits unless Blair said so.
As Blair was talking about the designer's new line and how fabulous it was from what she saw of it at a fashion show she went to a few weeks ago, the group gained a sixth member, Jenny Humphrey. After Cotillion, Blair kept her word that all was forgiven in regards to the little blonde freshman and Jenny was brought back into the fold, but ever since then, Blair was substantially harder on little J than the other minions. All may have been forgiven, but it was far from forgotten.
Blair considered the past couple of months Jenny's probationary period, she felt that Jenny ran through a stream of good luck and her desperation to still be a part of Blair's group was still there. At this point Blair only took it this far in hopes that little Jenny Humphrey would step up from her meek standing and respectfully stand up for herself. Where was the girl that Blair glimpsed at her sleepover? Where was the fire? Blair felt that if the freshman wanted to act as mascot instead of playing the game, than she was more than happy to treat her as such.
Jenny came and took a seat beside Elise with a high pitched, "Hi!"
The other minions greeted her with a smile and a polite hello, Blair simply rolled her eyes as she picked up her latte and scoffed at Jenny's enthusiasm, "You're late." She said bluntly, not even looking at the girl as she took a sip from her cup.
"Yeah, I know. I had to drop some books off at the library. Sorry," Jenny explained.
Blair wasn't even listening to Jenny's lame excuse as she responded lightly, "Would you do me a favor?"
"Anything," Jenny said eagerly as if she were some puppy.
Blair smiled as if her request wasn't that big of a deal and waved her hand down towards the steps, "Move down a couple steps." Blair continued to smile as she rested her index finger under her bottom lip as if she were contemplating on if that was enough for her. Mentally deciding that it was, Blair turned back to her group as she lightly brushed her hair off her face, still smiling. The others were silent as they waited to see what Jenny was going to do.
The blonde freshman moved as she was told before she spoke with a bit of sarcasm, "You know, this whole hazing thing is getting a bit old, don't you think, B.?"
Blair felt some relief that the girl was finally stepping up to play, but felt her annoyance rise at the same time. The girl had the nerve to show up late and then proceed to give a sarcastic remark? Again with the lack of respect! "First of all," Blair stated firmly, "The hazing stops when I say it stops. And for future reference, only my friends call me "B." Blair turned back towards Kati and Iz, who smiled at Blair's comeback while the others looked away awkwardly.
It was if Kati and Iz were the only ones who understood the real rules of the game. You want to move up? You have to pay your dues and demand it respectfully. Don't disregard the rules in place and then expect to still benefit the rewards. Blair heard Jenny sigh as she made to get up, "You know, I'm actually gonna go. I have a lot of stuff to do before class."
Blair mentally scoffed at the blonde's passive aggressive tactic, not even looking as she made her exit. Penelope called out after her to which Blair was quick to cut in with a roll of her eyes, "Please, she'll be back." Penelope quickly lost her nerve to take Jenny's side and went back to sipping her latte.
Not even a moment later, Serena breezed up the stairs with a smile, "Hey, guys."
The group gave half-hearted smiles and greetings as Blair forced a smile on her face in greeting to her best friend; obviously the Gossip Girl blast still very much on their minds. After a moment of even more awkwardness, Serena declared with a wave of her arms dramatically, "I'm not pregnant."
A variation of, "Aw, cool," and "Congratulations," from Kati and Iz along with an offer from Hazel, "Celebratory drinks after school?" It was quite obvious that the girls were a bit disappointed and not all that sure if they believed Serena's declaration, but out of respect for their Queen they put on a semi believable happy front.
Serena just rolled her eyes, "Yeah, sure. Blair, can I talk to you?"
It was then that Blair finally looked up at her best friend, tilting her head to the side with a smile, "Of course." Blair gathered her handbag and excused herself from her minions as she walked down the steps towards Serena, choosing to stay on a step above the ground floor, forcing Serena to look up at her and give them some privacy from the minions.
"Did you get my text?" Serena asked, not wasting time.
"Of course. Yes, I did, but I've been-," Blair began to give her explanation.
"So then you know I told Dan I'm not pregnant," Serena interrupted as she plowed on.
"Yes," Blair stated as she gripped Serena's arm giving it a light shake as she smiled, "And I am so happy for you. Close call, huh?"
Serena just looked at her for a moment before she closed her eyes for a moment as she asked, "Are we really going to play that old game, B.?"
"I have no idea what you're talking about," Blair stated bluntly as she felt a little chill in the winter air.
"Whenever something happens that's not a part of your plan, you pretend like it doesn't exist," Serena said softly. As Blair looked up at the sky and away from Serena in pure innocence, Serena continued on, "You act like you're in this movie about your perfect life, then I have to remind you, the only one watching that movie is you." When Blair simply sighed, not saying a word, Serena started in on the conversation they had last week, "You admitted that your period was late."
"Yes, I've been very stressed. I had that Chem test on Friday," Blair explained with her ready prepared answer.
"And you're acting like a total bitch because you're not hormonal?" Serena asked.
Blair put on her best bitch face and quipped, "Maybe I am a total bitch. Did you ever think about that?"
When Serena couldn't come up with a response to that, Blair smiled in triumph. Unfortunately the feeling was washed away when Serena dug into her bag and pulled out a pregnancy test and spoke softly, "Just take the test, B."
Blair quickly took the offending object, grateful that no one could see it since she was blocking their view and shoved it in her bag as she hissed, "Stop it."
"Just take the test," Serena said firmly, "You need to know if you and Chuck are going to have a baby." Blair said nothing as she just stared at her best friend, taking a deep breath as the blonde turned around and walked away from her. "This is exactly what I need," Blair thought silently.
And for a scandal to really blow up? All it needs is an unexpected turn.
xoxo
Blair had been avoiding Chuck for the past two week and he had to admit to himself that he didn't like it one little bit. He knew he hadn't done anything wrong to warrant such treatment, so it only meant that she was hiding something from him. At first Chuck didn't notice that she was actually avoiding him until a week in the game. He knew with midterms and S.A.T.'s coming up she was swamped with all of her duties so he took her cancelations in stride and took the opportunity to reconnect with Nate.
The two were on the path to being friends again and Nate was warming up to the idea of Chuck and Blair together. Chuck still hadn't told Nate the truth about how he and Blair first started, but by this point Chuck thought that it was just semantics. "Then why haven't you just told him then?" the voice in Chuck's head asked him. Unfortunately he had no snappy comeback to the blunt question and chose to shrug it off.
Chuck had just finished his last class and was going down the hall to go to Victrola to see how everything was progressing. The re-opening of the club was coming in a few weeks and Chuck wanted everything to run smoothly. As he looked across the courtyard he saw his girlfriend and made an attempt to go towards her in hopes that he could find out what was going on with her. But before he could even call out to her after she locked eyes with him, she quickly changed directions and almost ran into Nate. This resulted in them having a conversation.
Chuck sighed as he watched by the wall, figuring that he could afford to wait for her to be finished with Nate. Chuck had to admit that he was a bit hurt though. His girlfriend was avoiding him for some reason and was spending more time talking to her ex than she was to him. He wasn't jealous of Nate, he finally set that insecurity to bed after Cotillion; he just didn't like that Blair was running to him and away from Chuck.
Blair smiled in relief as she stood talking to Nate; the boy seriously had great timing. It would have looked ridiculous if Blair just flat out ran away from her boyfriend like she felt she had no choice to do not five minutes ago. Nate gave her the perfect opportunity to avoid the conversation she knew she needed to have with Chuck. As Blair turned Nate so that his back was facing Chuck so she could see him better in case he tried to do a sneak attack on her, Blair could see that her boyfriend was a bit hurt at her constant rejections, and she had to admit that she didn't like hurting him. She just didn't know what to do about her situation. What if Serena was right and Blair was in fact- she couldn't even bring herself to even think the word. How would Chuck react to the news? Would he tell her to get rid of it? Make her go away? The thought of either option was completely heartbreaking to Blair, not to mention, what about Yale? Her future would be gone if she was.
Not wanting to think about it any longer Blair took a deep breath and tuned back into what Nate was saying just in time, "Would you do me a really big favor?"
Blair smiled, "What is it?"
"I need you to come with me to visit my dad in rehab. Please?" He asked softly.
Blair was surprised but also touched that he would ask her, "Really?"
Nate sighed and nodded, "Yeah, it's just- it gets really awkward when I have to go alone now, and I don't know what to say anymore. Plus, he loves you. You always know how to make him laugh. Besides, we're friends, right?"
Blair smiled and nodded softly, "Yes, we're friends. Nathaniel Archibald, you have never asked me for anything and here you are, actually asking me for help. And it only took us a break up and the silent treatment."
The two shared a laugh and a hug before Nate had to go meet his teammates for practice and Blair had to go home. When she glanced across the courtyard, she felt relieved that Chuck was gone and she survived another day. The question was how many free passes was she allowed to have before her walls came tumbling down?
xoxo
After changing out of her uniform and setting up her notebook and laptop on her bed, Blair began to work on her homework. Purposely putting all her worries and troubles out of her head, she began to work on the day's assignments with ease. It wasn't even an hour later when Serena walked into her room without being announced by Dorota. Blair felt a moment of panic at being cornered without anyone to help prevent Serena from pushing the subject.
"Hey, B.," Serena greeted as she stood at the foot of Blair's bed.
"What are you doing here?" Blair asked as she went back to work on her homework lying beside her.
Serena answered sarcastically, "I was in the neighborhood."
Blair looked up at Serena with a look on her face as if to say nothing was wrong but she was busy, "Can we talk later? Despite your best efforts to ruin it, I'm actually having a good day, and I don't want anything to spoil it." Blair smiled excitedly, "Guess who asked me to visit the Captain with him?"
"I don't know. Nate?" Serena stated the obvious.
"Yes. It's like when we decided to just be friends he finally is okay with asking for my help. Compared to when we were together I had to beg him to open up-," Blair tried to explain her thought process.
"Look, B., I understand why you're reluctant to burst your happy bubble," Serena interrupted, "But I'm not giving up."
"Well, I'm sorry, if unlike some people, I haven't been on the pill since I was 15," Blair snapped back at Serena, her voice dripping with venom.
"Okay, I am giving up," Serena quickly retreated and picked up her bag, "Before you start planning your perfect friend moment, don't you think-"
"I'm not pregnant, Serena!" Blair interrupted firmly. To which the blonde scoffed and left the room without saying another word. Blair pressed her lips together as she looked down at her duvet. Still not ready to admit that there was a chance she was. She wasn't ready to leave the land of denial, where everything went the way she wanted it to. She wasn't ready to risk the chance that she may lose Chuck if she was. There was a part of her that scoffed and said it was ridiculous, but there was another part that said that it could happen.
She didn't know how he felt about her. She knew that he cared about her, but he still hadn't expressed the extent of his feelings for her and until then she didn't want to push him with the added stress of a potential- thing. As Blair looked down at her books and homework, she made the decision to talk to Chuck tomorrow. Hopefully everything will work out and her fears are for nothing.
"He has always been there for you before, why should now be any different? If anything he should be more devoted," Blair tried to reason with herself as she went back to work, knowing that tomorrow was going to be a long day. At that moment, Blair didn't realize how right she was.
xoxo
Chuck was sitting in his suite alone and he didn't like it. It brought back too many memories of when he was drinking his troubles away and wasn't happy. Don't get Chuck wrong, he enjoyed the occasional night with a glass of scotch, but he found that he enjoyed the nights spent with a certain doe eyed, brunette even better. He smirked into his glass as he took a sip. But unfortunately, because she was avoiding him, they haven't had a night like that together in a couple of weeks.
Chuck set his glass down on the bar as he made a decision. He was through with spending his nights alone without his consent and he was going to talk to his girlfriend tomorrow and find out what the hell was going on. He scoffed to himself softly as he realized his hypocrisy; here he was, wanting to know what it was she was hiding when he himself was hiding something from her. He was hiding his true feelings and she deserved to know how he felt about her, just like he deserved to know about whatever it was that she was hiding. Whatever it was, it couldn't be that bad and if it was, they would fix it. Together they were indestructible and nothing could stop them from reaching their goals.
After making that decision, Chuck heard a knock on his door. He quickly made his way over, hoping that it was Blair so they could hash this out now rather than tomorrow, he looked through the peephole. But, unfortunately for tonight, he was doomed for disappointment. He reluctantly opened the door, not saying a word as Serena walked in with a soft, "Hi, Chuck."
"Please, call me "brother," he responded with a smirk.
Sadly, the blonde didn't respond in the way that he hoped, but he guessed with her delicate condition she would be a bit more sensitive and serious, "I need to talk to you."
"About getting knocked up?" Chuck asked as he moved away from the door, motioning her inside, "I must say I was a little disappointed you weren't more careful."
Serena just looked at him briefly before walking further into the suite as Chuck shut the door behind her with a smirk. He watched as Serena took a seat at the bar, fiddling with her hands and looking nervous as he made his way to stand in front of her on the other side. Patience being one of his few virtues, Chuck didn't say anything as he stood there, waiting for the blonde to state what she was doing there.
"Chuck, I really need to trust you. I'm hoping that deep down inside you're actually a decent person and you actually care about Blair," Serena began. Chuck had to refrain from rolling his eyes. Why is it that the blonde always saw the worst in him, but never anyone else? It wasn't as if her reputation was any better than his until recently.
"So you're here for Blair then?" Chuck asked as he poured himself a glass of water, something telling him that he needed to be sober for this.
Serena nodded carefully before she just blurted out the truth, "The pregnancy test wasn't for me. It was for Blair."
Chuck froze and faintly heard him ask, "What?"
"She won't take it," Serena continued on, "So given that if she's pregnant, you're the-"
Chuck quickly raised his hand in front of Serena and turned away, "No, we use a condom. Every time." Chuck rubbed his face, not looking at Serena as his mind raced over this new information.
"Well, obviously, it broke," Serena snapped at him.
Chuck shook his head to himself, trying to pinpoint when this could have happened. His mind ran over every single, delicious time with Blair in the past couple of months. It was hard to believe that according to the world at large that sort of mattered, that he and Blair have only been together for such a short amount of time of two months, when in reality it's been about three. "No, we've been very careful with always using a condom and there has never been an incident when it broke-," He paused as he remembered when it may have happened. It was during the first week that they were together, during their third time in the earlier morning hours. It was the first and only time that Chuck got so caught up in the moment that he forgot to put on a condom; it was before Blair got on the pill to avoid such things from happening again.
Chuck covered his mouth and turned back towards Serena who was still sitting there, staring at him, "What?"
Chuck paused, not knowing how to proceed as he places his hands on top of the bar, putting all his weight down on his hand as he spoke softly, "There was one time during our first week, I forgot to put it on…but she got her period that month, so we assumed we were…" Chuck quickly rubbed his face in frustration. "And if she is…," he breaks off, unable to even say it, "that would mean that she would be three months…"
Serena frowned in confusion, "Three? Don't you mean two?"
Chuck frowned at the blonde before realizing that Blair hadn't told her either of the real story and mentally kicked himself before just telling her the truth, figuring that she was able to keep the pregnancy secret, she could handle this one too, "No, I meant three. Blair and I have been together since the night before her birthday party. The same night she broke up with Nate…"
Serena looked at him in shock and slight judgment, "Why the big secret…?" she asked carefully.
Chuck rolled his eyes and pointed at the blonde in front of him, "To avoid looks like that. The look that screams of judgment, that I am Blair's rebound or I took advantage of her, whatever. Look, I need some time alone to process this, you can go." Chuck dismissed her as he took his glass of scotch and go into the bedroom area, not waiting to see her go as he tried to figure out how he was going to handle this situation with his girlfriend. If he was freaking out this bad, he could only imagine how bad she was freaking out too. The good part about this is that he had already decided to go talk to her tomorrow, only now he was going to talk to her sooner rather than later.
xoxo
The next morning, Serena once again stopped by Blair's penthouse without advance warning to find Blair still in her night gown and eating her breakfast for the day. Blair looked up, feeling a bit apprehensive towards the blonde as she greeted her and Dorota with a cheery, "Morning."
Hoping that this was just a simple social visit, Blair put on a smile after popping a grape into her mouth as Dorota answered, "Good morning, Miss Serena."
"Anybody notice the weather today?" Serena asked as she stood in Blair's sitting room, not taking a seat.
Blair frowned in confusion as she looked at her best friend as if she were insane, which she wouldn't be surprised if she were, "What?"
"Take a look outside, B," Serena stated firmly. Blair looked behind her with Dorota out the window, but as Serena continued speaking, Blair slowly turned towards Serena with a glare, "My first response would be that the sky is a clear blue easy."
Not wanting Dorota to even catch wind of what Serena was talking about, Blair quickly glanced at her maid before stating bluntly with a smile, "Dorota, you may be excused now."
After making sure the Polish maid was completely out of earshot, Serena took a seat on the arm of the couch beside Blair with a hurt look on her face, "I can't believe you didn't tell me about you and Chuck."
Blair frowned, really confused now, "Serena…you were there when it happened…" she spoke as if she were talking to a five year old.
"Not the press release version of the story, the real one. When you two got together the same night you broke up with Nate?" Serena stated bluntly.
Blair sat up a bit, worried but careful to not show it, "And where did you hear this?"
"Chuck told me, when I went to see him because I thought maybe he could talk some sense into you," Blair sighed in relief briefly at the first part of Serena's answer, but felt her breath hitch at the last part.
"So he knows now? You had no right to do that," Blair stated obviously upset.
"I was trying to help you, B.," Serena defended herself, "I took a public bullet for you, let another rumor about me run rampant." Blair looked down at her hands as Serena continued on about how this situation affected her life, "The whole school heard, even Dan."
Neither of the girls noticed Eleanor walking down the hall and entering the foyer until she spoke, "What's going on?"
Blair locked eyes with Serena before the blonde turned and looked at the elder Waldorf woman, "Ask Blair. Her version of the story's always better." With a final glance at Blair that still showed that the blonde didn't manage to get through to her, Serena whispered firmly, "Fine," and she got up and left the apartment without another look back.
Blair watched her best friend leave not really feeling the need to call her back so they could talk. Now, thanks to Serena, she had to push up her plans and talk to Chuck. She still didn't understand why he felt the need to enlighten Serena with the truth…unless he remembered the one time that they didn't use a condom. But, Blair had since gotten her period between then and now, so she couldn't be pregnant form then, right?
She was interrupted from her thoughts as Eleanor asked gently, "Are you all right?"
"Never been better," Blair stated with a hint of irony.
"Well, Serena has," Eleanor chuckled a bit before asking patiently, "What's wrong?"
"I don't know," Blair said defensively, "I can't be held responsible for her mood swings." The irony of Blair's word choice was not lost on her as she rolled her eyes.
"Were you arguing about the possibility that your "condition" may have returned?" Eleanor asked gently as she took a seat on the arm of the couch where Serena was.
"No. And it hasn't," Blair said truthfully.
"I heard you…the other day, in your bathroom, with the water running," Eleanor spoke with purpose as she looked at Blair with concern.
It was the concern that caused Blair to want to lash out, but she strived to control the urge as she explained, "I'm very stressed. And with you and Serena down my throat, I can hardly think straight, never mind keep food down."
By the time that Blair was finished speaking, Eleanor stood up from her seat, sensing that Blair wasn't ready to open up about this, she offered a suggestion, "Maybe you do just need to take a little break, huh? Visit your father? Lyon is beautiful this time of year."
Blair tilted her head to the side at her mother and made a counter offer getting irritated, "Maybe this summer."
"Summer sounds great," Eleanor accepted and heard the elevator bell go off as someone else came into their penthouse. Eleanor smiled at the newcomer and looked at her daughter, "Finish your breakfast," she stated as she left the room to go back into her office.
Blair felt herself become even more overwhelmed by this morning and she was still expected to go to school? She rubbed her face with her hands, not even realizing that someone else arrived until she heard his voice, "You've been avoiding me, Waldorf."
Blair released a deep breath and looked at her boyfriend wearily, not sure what she was going to see. Chuck gave a half smirk and walked towards her, "And you've been keeping something from me." He took a seat beside her, taking her hand in his, "I thought we agreed when we first went public: No secrets, and no lies from each other."
Blair looked at their joined hands as she listened, nodding, "You're right, but you've been keeping something from me too." Blair stated, trying to turn the conversation around off of her and her possible "condition".
Chuck simply looked up at her without moving his head before stating bluntly, "I think my secret, is not as big as your secret. So…how about we go upstairs for some privacy?" Chuck stood up from the couch, pulling Blair to come with him.
As the couple sat together on the lounger, neither said anything for a while before Chuck asked her softly, "Were you ever planning on telling me?"
Blair tightened her hand around Chucks as she looked up at him, "I was. I was going to talk to you today, but, apparently, Serena just had to meddle. I wanted to be the one to tell you, after I accepted the possibility to myself."
Chuck nodded, believing her words as he held her close, "Go take the test, and while we wait, I'll tell you my secret."
"I can't be pregnant from then. I've since had my period, so it can't be possible," as a last ditch effort of proof that she wasn't pregnant.
"Actually, I did some research and you can still get your period during your pregnancy," Chuck refuted her claim before kissing her temple gently in encouragement, "Go on, I'll be right out here, waiting."
Blair sighed in frustration and took the test out of her night stand and went into the bathroom. After following the directions, she set the test on the sink before she ran away from the bathroom and found that Chuck had moved over to the bed. "Two minutes," she spoke softly as she climbed in beside him.
It was the longest two minutes of either of the teen's life. And they didn't even talk during that time; they just lay there on Blair's bed together, holding each other as they waited for the alarm to go off. And when it finally did, neither one of them could move to go check the test. "What am I going to do if it's positive?" Blair asked softly, so unsure of herself and the situation.
Chuck hugged her tighter, "We'll figure it out, together. It's you and me against the world, remember? Together we're indestructible."
Blair smiled faintly as he repeated his words from Cotillion before asking what she really meant earlier, "You'd be there?" She sat up on the bed, resting her back against the headboard behind her.
Chuck nodded softly as he sat up too, "Every step of the way, Waldorf. You'll have the best doctors that money can buy and I'll take care of you."
Blair looked at the man she loved and saw something that brought her up short. Chuck Bass was afraid. Was he afraid for her or the situation, she didn't know. Blair reflected over the words he had spoken silently. After a moment, it hit her hard of the potential source of fear stemmed from. She couldn't believe that she forgot that Chuck was brought into this world at the cost of his own mother.
"Why?" Blair asked faintly, wanting to know the truth, but also hoping that the word duty never comes out of his mouth in his answer.
"Because I love you," Chuck stated firmly, "Because I've been here for you whenever you needed me and I'll continue to be here, even when you want me to go away. I refuse to lose you. And because I'm Chuck Bass, I'm going to make sure it doesn't happen."
Blair felt herself relax as he finally said the words she had waiting so patiently for, "You love me?"
Chuck nodded as he watched Blair smile happily at his words before he spoke again, "Are you going to say something back?"
Blair chuckled a bit as she picked up his hand and looks at his wrist, seeing that he was wearing the cufflinks she bought for him for Christmas, "I never told her the meaning behind these cufflinks did I?"
Chuck frowned in confusion at the change of subject, but goes along with it, not wanting to push, "You told me it was because I was going to need them, now that I was starting my own business."
Blair nodded, still smiling softly, "I did, but there was another reason," she looked up at her boyfriend as she continued to speak, "Remember when Nate gave me back my pin before Cotillion?" Chuck nodded silently, "Well when I thought of your Christmas gift, I wanted a way of telling you my feelings without pressuring you to feel the need to show me yours. So I bought these for you and had your initials engraved inside a heart."
Chuck smirked at his brilliant, sexy girlfriend before he asked, "Are you saying that this was your practical version of putting your heart on my sleeve?"
Blair nods softly, "Yes. I knew that I loved you then, but I didn't want to say it first because of what happened with Nate in the same situation where he felt obligated to tell me he loved me back. But you know I'm impatient about things that matter, so I gave these to you so that I can put on the illusion that I was."
Chuck scoffed and shakes his head slowly as his smile grew before he kissed her lips hungrily. After he broke their shared kiss he whispered against her lips, "I love you, Blair Waldorf. No matter what happens, know that I love you."
"And I love you, Chuck Bass, no matter what happens. And allow me to tell you that you're never going to lose me. I'm not going anywhere, not without you," Blair smiled as she wrapped her arms around his neck and held him close.
It was still a few minutes more before the couple, together, got up from the bed and went into the bathroom together. Chuck held her hand as they looked at the test facing down so they couldn't see the results without moving it. Blair took a deep breath before looking up at herself in the mirror and stated bluntly, "I'm not pregnant. I command myself not to be pregnant."
Chuck found himself smirking at her reflection as he lightly teased, "Trying to will yourself to not be pregnant there, Waldorf?"
Blair frowned at his reflection, "Shut up, Bass."
The smirk grew as he only responded, "As you wish my Queen."
Blair carefully picked up the stick and read what it said. She sighed in relief and smiled softly as she showed Chuck the stick that clearly stated Not Pregnant. Blair set the test down as she found herself laughing softly, to which Chuck's laughter joined hers as he wrapped his arms around her as he held her tightly. She wrapped her arms around his neck as he lifted her off the floor a bit. She wasn't pregnant!
"So I guess that willing yourself to not be pregnant works?" Chuck teased as he just held her in his arms, feeling just as relieved as she was.
Blair smacked his back at his comment, "Shut up, Bass."
To which Chuck just kissed her lips in response. Blair giggled lightly as she returned his kisses before asking, "Still love me? Even though I'm not having your spawn?"
Chuck smirked, "Always. How about you?"
Blair nodded softly as she bit her bottom lip, "The butterflies have completely taken over my life. Is it weird that, while I'm relieved, I'm a bit disappointed?"
Chuck slowly shook his head, "No, because I feel the exact same way. Maybe it just means that someday…you won't necessarily mind having my spawn."
Blair nodded in agreement as she brushed her nose along with his, "Chuck Bass, I think I just fell in love with you a little bit more…"
Chuck grinned at her as he set her back down on her feet, "Good. Now call Serena, tell her your good news and make up. I'm taking you to school today." With a quick kiss, Chuck was out of the bathroom and heading downstairs to wait for her, granting her a bit of privacy to talk to her friend. Blair literally could not ask for a better boyfriend, and he loved her! He finally said it!
Blair squealed to herself as she picked up phone and dialed. Fortunately, she didn't have to wait long before Serena answered, "Hello?"
"Hey, S. it's B.," Blair strived for a business-like tone to not give away her good news. "Two things. First…I'm sorry about Dan, about the Gossip Girl blast and about not telling you about Chuck and me."
"Okay," Serena answered.
"You were just so hard on me at Thanksgiving when you just thought that he and I just slept together, I just didn't want your judgment about being in an actual relationship with him at the time," Blair finished explaining it from her point of view.
"I understand. Apology accepted," Serena answered.
Blair raised her eyebrows in surprise as she spoke, "That was fast. If I were you, I would've made me work for it a little bit harder."
"Well, I think you've suffered enough," Serena said softly.
Not wanting to put off her good news for much longer, Blair continued on, "And second thing-,"
"Wait. That's already, like, three things," Serena interrupted.
"I took the test," Blair continued on as if Serena didn't interrupt, "I'm not pregnant!" Blair had to jerk the phone away from her ear at Serena's high pitched scream of surprise as she laughed and found herself jumping for joy again in the bathroom.
"Are you kidding me? That's wonderful news, B.," Serena squealed over the phone, "Oh, I am so happy. Are you going to tell Chuck?"
Blair smiled into the phone, "Actually, Chuck came by not too long after you left and held my hand as we waited for the results. He's actually downstairs now, waiting to take me to school."
"That's great, B., sounds like he's really genuine when it comes to you," Serena said supportively.
"Clean slate?" Blair offered, her tone filled with hope.
"Oh, clean slate. Oh, I'm so happy! See you at school," Serena squealed, Blair could see in her head Serena standing in the middle of a sidewalk, jumping up and down with joy as she hung up the phone. Everything was going to be fine. Chuck finally confessed his feelings and they were going to come out of this stronger than ever after this small bump in the road. Blair sighed and headed to her closet to quickly get dressed for the day.
xoxo
After Chuck and Blair went their separate ways for the day, Blair was literally on cloud nine as she walked down the hallway to go to her classes. After the worry from this morning, it seemed as if the day had flown by. Everyone seemed to be on the wavelength that their Queen was in a joyful mood for the first time in two week and was quick to enjoy it while it lasted. Blair didn't even see Jenny today at lunch, maybe the freshman had finally threw in the towel and decided to go back into obscurity.
Blair shrugged it off without thinking on it too much. If the girl couldn't handle what Blair dished out, she wasn't worth Blair's time. She had better things to do than watch Jenny throw away the opportunity that Blair offered her. Blair shook her head clear of the thoughts surrounding the blonde freshman and began planning a special date for her and Chuck to celebrate this next chapter in their relationship.
Blair was so busy planning that she was unaware that the only thing that could bring her down came in the form of a text message, and the message was sent just as she was heading down the stairs to leave school for the day. Blair took out her phone along with everyone around her which could only mean that it was a Gossip Girl blast.
Looks like the Virgin Queen isn't as pure as she pretended to be. If Blair Waldorf lied about that what else might she be lying about? According to my very reliable source, her and C's fling started much sooner after her break up with N, try two minutes. Way to bounce back, B. I only hope that your bouncing baby can handle the rebound, because it looks like you two are stuck together.
Blair felt as if she couldn't breathe as she read the blast; it was everything she feared only ten times worse. Who knew? Who could have done this? The only person that knew the truth was Serena and she would never have told anyone let alone Gossip girl. As Blair looked up from her phone, she saw that everyone was staring at her and whispering. They were like a pack of hyenas ready to finish off the fresh kill. For the first time in Blair's reign as Queen she didn't know what to do to salvage the situation.
She slowly made her way down the main stairs, spotting Kati and Iz as they looked at her, waiting for her to react to the post. Blair asked them, "Have you seen Chuck?" They shook their heads, no, but didn't say anything else as they watched Blair make a quick exit out of the courtyard searching for her boyfriend.
Meanwhile, Chuck was leaning against his limo as he waited for Blair to come out so they could spend some time alone after the morning's events when his phone went off with the Gossip Girl blast. "Well there goes the afternoon of fun," he thought silently as he shut his phone. "Blair must be attempting to do damage control or something to fix it," he reasoned for why she was late.
He was so wrapped up in his thoughts as he waited that he didn't even see Nate approach until he felt himself being grabbed from behind and pushed onto the back of his limo. Chuck looked up at his attacker and saw it was Nate and he did not look happy as he glared at Chuck as he hissed, "Two weeks before Cotillion, huh?" Chuck didn't even bother to say anything, knowing the truth was out. Nate wrapped his hands around Chuck's throat as he threatened, "You son of a bitch. I could kill you!"
"Can we talk about this without your hands around my neck?" Chuck tried to reason with his friend.
"How long was it before then, huh? Did you take what you wanted once, and then went back for more till she forced you to play this sick game of "happy couple"?!" Nate yelled into Chuck's face before pushing Chuck away from him as he backed away.
Chuck felt his anger rise as he yelled back, "That's not how it happened! Yeah, I took what Blair kept throwing at you and you kept throwing back, but it is more than that."
"Oh, so somehow you screwing Blair for sport is my fault?" Nate snarled
Chuck rolled his eyes, "It isn't for sport. She needed someone to treat her the way she deserved to be treated and I stepped up. I may have taken what she offered, but I gave her just as much."
"Oh, so you care about her so much, do you?" Nate yelled as he threw his hands in the air.
Chuck shook his head gently, "You guys were broken up."
Nate quickly got into Chuck's face, "What, for how long? A week? An hour? You know what it doesn't even matter because you sat there and lied to my face!"
Chuck began to feel that familiar fear from Cotillion as Nate walked away from him. He didn't understand how this could have become such a huge thing when he and Nate had just renewed their friendship. "I know how long you and I have been best friends, okay-,"
Nate spun around as he yelled, "No it's not okay, Chuck. From now on, you stay away from me." Nate pushed Chuck away before turning around and leaving Chuck there.
Chuck honestly didn't know what to do except to call out to his best friend; his best friend that he only recently got back only to lose again because he couldn't handle the truth. Nate's final words to Chuck were, "Stay the hell away from me, Chuck!" before he headed back inside the school, passing by the crowd of people that just witnessed the scene.
Chuck quickly cleared his face of the devastation he felt and yelled at the crowd of people, "Show's over!" Not waiting to watch them shuffle out of his sight, Chuck got in his limo and told Arthur to drive him home. He took out his phone when he heard it ring and saw that it was Blair and answered quickly. "Hey, you okay?"
"It's bad, Bass…where are you?" Blair asked softly through the phone.
"In my limo, I'm sorry I didn't wait for you, but Nate ambushed me and he was not too pleased to learn the truth," Chuck tried his best to sound disconnected from the scene that occurred, "He basically disowned me as his friend and that I need to stay away from him."
"What? Did you explain the situation to him?" Blair asked as her breathing picked up over the phone. Chuck assumed that she was running to catch a cab to leave school. No need to linger after today's bomb.
"I tried, but he wasn't interested. Look we're going to be fine, this is just a bump. Wanna meet and come up with a game plan for tomorrow?" Chuck paused before adding on, "I need you tonight," sounding far more vulnerable than Chuck Bass allowed himself to be.
"Okay, I need to run an errand, but I'll meet you at my place this evening?" She offered softly, almost as if she understood how upset he was over the situation, which with her knowing him better than anyone else, she did.
"Yeah, see you then," Chuck whispered and hung up the phone. He glanced at his minibar in the car and reached towards it, taking out the large tumbler of scotch and began to drink from it, savoring the burn as it went down his throat. Just when everything was going right, it all becomes a major cluster fuck.
xoxo
After Blair hung up the phone with Chuck, she immediately went to fulfill her errand for the afternoon. There were only two thoughts that swarmed Blair's mind as she waited to see the person she came for: One, who sent the tip to gossip girl and two, Chuck was hurting and she would do everything within her power to fix it. She was brought out of her musings at the sound of the front door slamming behind her as she sat in the sitting room.
As Nate came into the room, he immediately noticed her as she stood up from the couch. The two just stared at each other for a moment before he said bluntly, "What are you doing here?"
"Your mom let me in," Blair explained, purposely not answering the question.
"I didn't ask how you got in," Nate snapped, "I asked why you came."
Blair pressed her lips together before she responded, "To talk…about me, Chuck, and you."
Nate glared, "There is no you, me and Chuck, Blair."
Blair made her way around the couch while countered her move by going the opposite direction around, "Yes there is. We finally really have a chance to start fresh and start over as friends."
"You know, all this time, I felt so bad for everything I've done, and when you said you wanted to start over and leave the past in the past and be friends, I didn't know we were talking about your past." Nate said with a shrug as he threw his scarf to the side.
Blair closed her eyes and sighed, striving for patience as she reached his side, standing in front of him as she spoke, "You and I had just broken up, I was hurt and upset with how our relationship became just a series of secrets and lies. And he was there for me, just like he has always been."
"Secrets and lies? But you call what we've been going through for the last couple of week's honesty?" Nate raised his voice, obviously getting more upset. "I want nothing else to do with either of you. If this is what you call a friendship where it's based on lies, I want no part of it."
"One lie after over ten years of friendship is enough to end it all? You know Gossip Girl doesn't ever have the entire story and here I am giving it to you, and you choose to listen to a blog?" Blair felt her patience waning over this situation. "May I remind you of my 17th birthday party? She'll spin anything to get a good enough reaction."
"But Jenny wouldn't," Nate defended his decision.
Blair paused as she took in his words, "Jenny?"
"And don't go blaming any of this on her, Blair. I would have found out eventually. I said I'm done. With both of you," Nate said firmly as he looked away from her.
It was when he turned his back on her that Blair lost all of her remaining patience and hissed at him, "You're an extraordinary hypocrite."
Nate looked at her over his shoulder with a look of confusion, "What?"
"You heard me," Blair stated bluntly as she slowly walked over to him, "You cheated on me, with my best friend and didn't even tell me until a year later when your conscience couldn't handle it anymore. You then proceed to secretly pursue said best friend without any regards to my feelings and continued to string me along. And just when I thought you woke up and realized what you had, I find out that you're supposedly kissing the same best friend and confessing your love for her.
"But had no plans to tell me any of this just for the sake of our family's business relationship. And even after I broke up with you, you were going to string me along once again with a proposal, but by the grace of the gods, you, for some reason, couldn't even deigned to show up!
"And you have the audacity to stand here and look your nose down at me and Chuck for choosing to focus on our relationship in the beginning so we wouldn't screw it up? After months of the silent treatment, when you and Chuck had finally made a solid effort to become friends again, you take this opportunity when you find out the truth, to instead of showing that you're pass all of this, you use it as an excuse. So I want to know, Nate, what about it necessarily makes you so angry."
Nate didn't say anything as he looked away and looked down at the floor. Blair shook her head at the sight before her. Chuck was right all those months ago; Nate was not worthy to be her equal. "That's what I thought," Blair spoke softly. "I love him, Nate. That is the only reason why I even came here to fix this. Because he's hurting over the second loss of his best friend, maybe for good, and I wanted to fix it for him, because he means more to me than my current disgust for you."
Finished nailing her final blow, Blair turned and left Nate's townhouse without a second glance with her head held high and hailed a cab. She felt as if she was finally free of some of the weight she carried in regards to what used to be hers and Nate's relationship and she felt great. Now she just had to deal with another fish that needed frying. They didn't call her a bitch for nothing.
xoxo
Chuck lifted his head from the bar at the sound of a knock on his suite door. It had been two hours since the confrontation with Nate in front of the school and he still hadn't received word from Blair about when she wanted him to come by. He glanced at his phone and realized that he was wrong. He frowned as he read the message: Come by in two hours so we can plan. I know who sent the tip. Love you –B.
Chuck smirked at her words as he stood up from his seat and checked his watch. The text was sent an hour ago, he must have missed it somehow. Chuck's smirk turned into a frown as his attention was caught by the knock on his door once again. Not sure who it could be since he was meeting Blair, Chuck slowly made his way over and opened the door without checking the peephole. When he saw who was on the other side of the door, he knew he should have.
"Well…this is a surprise, Nathaniel. I thought I remember you distinctly stating, rather loudly, to stay the hell away from you," Chuck spoke softly as he leaned against the edge of the door.
Nate sighed, having the grace to look embarrassed, "Yeah, I said that."
"This is the opposite of that, Nathaniel," Chuck spoke the obvious, not moving.
Nate nodded, "Can I come in? I promise to keep my hands to myself."
Chuck thought on it for a moment before stepping aside and letting Nate in, "Only if you promise."
Chuck shut the door behind him as Nate stood in the middle of the suite, facing Chuck before Nate blurted out, "Do you love her? I mean, really love her?"
Chuck nodded as he blinked at Nate, not knowing where this was going. "She loves you too," Chuck nodded grinning a bit to himself, "She just got finished yelling at me for how stupid and hypocritical I was being. She, being Blair, was right. I have no grounds to be upset other than you lied to me, but it was about your relationship not ours. I just took it as an opportunity to hold it against you, if I thought that you two were just screwing around."
Chuck took in Nate's words and slowly processed them. Blair went to go talk to Nate on his behalf, she yelled and seemed to have smacked some sense into his friend to the point that he was here attempting to make amends. It was in that moment that Chuck knew in his heart of hearts that she was it for him. There could never be anyone for him except for Blair Waldorf and she had successfully ruined him for anyone else that had even the smallest of potential to claim his heart.
"I'm sorry for how I reacted earlier," Nate apologized.
Chuck nodded softly, "I'm sorry for not telling you the truth. I just thought it was best to just tell you what we told everyone else because I could tell you weren't quite on board with the whole me and Blair thing."
Nate nodded back as he glanced around the room, "So….you free tonight? Want to hang out?"
Chuck smirked as he checked his watch, knowing that he had to go, "As much as I would enjoy that, I unfortunately have to go meet up with Blair for a scheme. She says she knows who sent the tip to Gossip Girl." Nate sighed and nodded, looking a bit disappointed that Chuck offered, "Want to come? You need all the help you can get to get back into her good graces after she yelled at you."
Nate thought on it and appeared to come to an agreement with Chuck's thought process and tossed Chuck his coat so they could go. And just like that Nate and Chuck were back as they were 24 hours ago; slowly making their way back to the friendship that once was.
xoxo
Blair sat quietly upon the lounger in the sitting room of her penthouse apartment when the sound of the elevator bell rang to inform her that her visitor had arrived. Blair was so upset that she hadn't even gotten around to changing out of her school clothing earlier when she got home. She just spent the afternoon trying to put the pieces together on how this entire mess got started. She knew that Jenny was the one that set the whole thing in motion, but who was Jenny's source. It didn't take Blair long to realize the obvious answer. And that answer had just walked through her front door.
"Hey, B. What's up?" Serena spoke as if she wasn't aware of how hard of a hit Blair took socially this afternoon.
Blair slowly looked up from her hands as she looked at her best friend and just shook her head gently as she spoke, "I can't believe you told Jenny about me and Chuck."
"What? I-I didn't," Serena spoke softly.
"Because of her, everybody knows the intimate details of my private life, and now Nate's not speaking to Chuck," Blair spoke forcefully, as she continued to sit there.
"But I-I told you, B. I didn't tell Jenny. I don't know how she found out," Serena explained.
Blair could tell that Serena wasn't lying, so she thought on it before raising her brows at the next obvious option of what happened, "Did you tell Dan?"
Serena paused and broke eye contact briefly before she asked, "What?" as if she didn't hear Blair the first time, and Blair had her answer.
Blair took a deep breath and shook her head at the situation, "You did. You told your low-rent boyfriend, and he told his social-climbing sister who wears my hand-me-downs, and she blabbed to Nate and Gossip Girl."
"I can't believe you're attacking Dan and Jenny," Serena had the nerve to defend them.
Blair stood up from her seat, feeling her fury rise as she did and asked for clarification as she walked over to Serena, "Did you or did you not tell him?"
Serena was once again silent for a moment, but Blair was going to wait for Serena to speak on her own, "I did," Serena spoke softly, Blair scoffed to herself as she looked away, "But only because you weren't dealing with it, and I wanted advice on how to help you. And then when Chuck told me the truth, I just needed someone to vent to and clear my head."
Blair found herself shaking her head in anger at the excuse, "I can't believe you don't get it. The rules are different for the Serena Van Der Woodsens of the world. People expect you to party and be wild, sleep with whoever you want, run away, come back."
"Wait, are we really going back there?" Serena asked, obviously hurt.
"You shot your reputation to hell a long time ago," Blair snapped, "It doesn't matter what you do, but I'm a Waldorf."
"Well, since you and your reputation obviously don't need me and my low-rent taste, you and the Waldorf name can weather the storm alone," Serena declared.
The two girls were so wrapped up in their conversation that they didn't even hear the sound of the bell of the elevator door chime and two more guests arrive, hearing the argument. As Serena turned to leave, it was Chuck that stopped her and turned her back around to face Blair. "Oh no, we already have one war on our hands, we don't need another to be stirred."
Blair crossed her arms over her chest as she looked away, not even noticing Nate in the background, "Let her go if she wants."
"No, she's going to stay here and you two are going fix this now. The sooner the better because we're going to need all hands on deck for this take-down, not to mention damage control for tomorrow," Chuck spoke with authority as he sat Serena down on the couch. "Now, you two are going to talk this out while Nate and I go into the kitchen to get some food."
Blair turned her head, for the first time noticing Nate behind Chuck. She felt a bit of relief that at least she was able to get through to him earlier as Chuck walked by her and lifted her chin up, "Besides, you probably haven't eaten since lunch, and you'll need your strength." He kissed Blair's lips lightly before leaving her alone again with Serena, with Nate quickly following.
The two friends don't say anything for a while before Blair got fed up and sighed before she snapped out, "I'm sorry about dragging up the past. It's just- a lot of events happened today, one right after the other and I was upset at the thought that you would betray my confidence like that." Blair looked down at the floor for a moment before she heard Serena pat the cushion beside her for Blair to sit down.
Blair sighed as she took a seat, leaning her head on her best friend's shoulder as her eyes welled up, "I was just so embarrassed," Serena wrapped her arm around Blair in comfort, "I even briefly considered going to France for the rest of the semester, still considering it by the way."
Serena shook her head, "Don't give her the satisfaction, B. You're a Waldorf remember, people don't tell you who you are, you tell them. Don't let some stupid scandal make you run away like everyone else. You are not everyone else."
Blair voice broke as she spoke, "I feel as if my life is falling apart."
"So rebuild it, make it even better than it was before; stay and fight. I'll fight with you." Serena encouraged as she held Blair tightly in comfort, wiping the tears from Blair's eyes gently. "We'll get through this together, all of us."
"Promise?" Blair asked hesitantly.
"Promise," Serena said firmly.
"Either way I thought I made myself clear that I'm not leaving from your side, Waldorf," Chuck added as he walked in with a platter of finger foods while Nate carried beverages to set up on the coffee table. Blair smiled at her boyfriend as he came over to her side and pulled her up onto her feet, wrapping his arms around her waist as he spoke, "No matter what happens, I love you, remember?"
Blair wrapped her arms around his neck and nodded softly, "I do. No matter what happens, I love you too." Chuck rested his forehead against Blair's as the two shared a small private moment. Blair felt herself calm down for the first time since the blast this afternoon was posted. Chuck always had this effect on her and Blair didn't realize how much she needed him beside her during all of this until that very moment. They were interrupted by a clearing of a throat on their right side.
"As sweet as all this is to witness," Serena spoke with an obvious smile on her face, "Are we coming up with a game plan or not?" Chuck and Blair smiled at each other and kissed briefly before Chuck got them settled on the lounger while Nate sat beside Serena. The foursome spent the next hour formulating plans in order to secure Blair's position as Queen as well as taking Jenny Humphrey down permanently.
Serena was against the second idea, of course, but after Nate confirmed that Jenny was the one that approached him and confirmed the blast, Serena was a little less against it. Chuck and Blair promised that they'd do their best to keep Dan out of the crossfires, but warned that it was a possibility. The blonde grew quiet after that revelation, but suggested that they wait out Jenny. Nate agreed, obviously very protective of the freshman. The brunette pair simply rolled their eyes at their friends and reluctantly agreed to not make a move against the freshman other than a declaration of war.
After everything was cemented and all the food and drinks were gone, Nate and Serena left for the night, leaving Chuck and Blair alone to have a small celebration of their milestone before proceeding with their plan for tomorrow at lunch. Despite what the blondes wanted, Chuck and Blair had no doubts that the freshman was going to attempt to go to war with Blair eventually. It was just a question of when it was going to happen.
The plan wasn't going to be quick; it was going to go over a period of time until Jenny was left in social Siberia with no means of escaping until Blair was long gone from Constance. Who knows, maybe with Jenny's lack of connections she'd be gone for good. And Blair was more than fine with that option. She'd keep her word to Nate and Serena and not actively pursue the plan for now, but, the second the freshman made her first strike, Blair was going to end her with the help of her dark knight.
xoxo
The next day Blair dressed carefully before she headed out to go to school. The plan would be set in motion at lunch today and Blair was more than ready to cement her standing as Queen. She knew more than most how fickle the masses can be, and with one, tiny scandal they would overthrow their rulers irrationally just because they find that they are not perfect. It's unfortunate, but that's the way of the game. One must keep a firm hold when you rule for this specific reason, and Blair was fortunate enough to have a few cards up her sleeves to play on such an occasion.
Serena met Blair about a block away from school and they went inside together with heads held high and a light smile on their faces as if nothing was wrong in their world. Blair was only grateful that the blast was sent after school let out yesterday so when Blair left it couldn't necessarily be construed as running away. The morning went by slowly as a few people continued whispering and glancing over at Blair with smiles at the gossip from yesterday, but Blair paid them no mind.
She knew that there would be whispers on why Chuck wasn't at school today, but the foursome, well more Blair, Chuck and Serena, Nate was completely oblivious to social politics, agreed that in order for Blair to contain her throne on her own merits, she needed to do it on her own without her powerful boyfriend for back up on the first day. Besides after her lunch meeting, Chuck made it a point to promise to come and sit with Blair on the steps to show a united front.
When the bell rang, Blair stood up from her chair and began the short walk to the MET steps to set the plan in motion. She walked with a purpose alone and paused when she saw that the group had already gathered, including little Jenny Humphrey. Blair made a point to suppress her smirk, she was hoping this would happen; this would make things so much easier for today's agenda.
Blair heard Hazel ask Jenny if she was joining them for lunch and before Jenny could respond, Blair made her appearance known, speaking to Jenny, "What are you doing here?"
Blair raised her brows up in question as she waited for Jenny's response, ready for anything. But of course once again the blonde didn't do anything but back down with, "I was just leaving." Honestly, Blair thought that with her posting the Gossip Girl blast and telling Nate as well as everyone else the truth that the freshman had actually grew a backbone, but it seems she more than prefers to do her dirty work behind closed doors.
As the group watched Jenny leave, it was Penelope who called out, "No, stay." Apparently the freshman also preferred to have other's fight her battles. Penelope turned to Blair continued speaking as Blair put on a face of confusion, "Blair, given you can barely manage your own messy affairs, surely you're not in a position to tell anyone where they can and can't eat."
Blair tilted her head to the side, letting a faint smirk play on her lips, "Do you realize who you're talking to?" It was always the weak ones who waited until the strong fell to flip.
"You mean a self-righteous bitch who always sat on her high horse judging everyone else?" Hazel had the nerve to snap out at Blair. Looks like that's two Blair thought silently, deciding to let them get whatever it was that they wanted off their chest.
"Pregnant little hypocrite," Penelope added, thinking she was so clever. Blair glanced over at Elise, Kati and Iz who, seeming to be the only smart ones in their group, chose to stay on the sidelines. Maybe smart for Kati and Iz, more out of fear in regards to Elise. Blair understood that Kati and Iz were simply trying to survive; Blair's claim to the throne was being questioned and it was up to Blair herself to shut it down on her own otherwise be considered weak and unworthy, but when they met Blair's gaze briefly before looking down in respect, it showed Blair that they still had loyalty to her.
Blair scoffed a bit as she flipped her hair out of her face, "Not that it's any of your business, but I'm not pregnant."
"Chuck must be thrilled," Penelope said condescendingly
"Either that or he paid for it to disappear to save face," Hazel added snidely.
Blair frowned, not seeing Hazel's logic, "What are you talking about?"
"The whole school saw him and Nate throw down over your cheap ass," Hazel said with a smirk, obviously thinking that victory was in her sights.
"To go from one guy to his best friend in a matter of hours?" Penelope added, obviously not impressed.
Hazel scoffed, "Pretty classy."
By this point, Blair was done playing the silent game and slowly walked up the stairs, slowly moving Penelope to the side so that she was towering over Hazel and smirked down at the short, blonde, "You want to talk about classy, Hazel? How about the time that you "accidentally" slept with your cousin? When I found you, no one would even speak to you, not even your own brother, but I'd be more than happy to send you back to being a social pariah with a few gift bags if you're that unhappy." Blair shrugged lightly as she laced her hands together as she tilted her head to the side, her point more than clear, judging by the look of fear in Hazel's eyes before she quickly broke Blair's gaze and looked down at the ground, not saying anything.
Blair smirked as she tilted her head to the other side, "No? Good. Unfortunately if you choose to stay, I have no choice but to punish you for your little display of disrespect just now. I think it best you move down to the fourth with Elise." Hazel looked up in shock at the obvious demotion in rank and after a brief staring match between her and Blair and Penelope, who had become completely silent since Blair moved her out of her way to talk to Hazel, Blair spoke lightly, "It's your choice, Hazel, move or get out."
Blair felt her smirk grow as Hazel sighed and took a few steps down the steps as she was ordered; now standing next to a quiet Elise. As Blair turned towards her next target, she felt Kati and Iz move to stand behind on either side of her in a show of support, proving that Blair was on the verge of complete victory. But Blair didn't even think of celebrating until she was finished, that was Hazel's problem, she reached too high and celebrated too soon that she was caught unawares of the ammunition that could easily take her down.
Blair looked at Penelope who looked not as confident and sure as she was at the middle of the conversation. Still smirking, Blair spoke to Penelope lightly as if they were just having a conversation about nothing important, "You know what, P., you're right," Blair glanced down at Jenny who was still standing there watching the scene play out, "Jenny has more than earned her place here with us, and since you were so eagerly to take up her defense, like any true friend would, I have an idea."
Blair shrugged lightly as she began to speak as if voicing her thoughts, "Why not, instead of having Jenny sit at the fifth as is tradition and since you are so invested in making sure that she gets what is owed her, have the two of you switch?"
Penelope looked at Blair in pure horror at the suggestion, causing Blair to nod in agreement with herself as she continued to smile a bit more maliciously, "Yes, I like that a lot. Of course it would be a probationary period. That is unless you feel that she has earned the third by the end of it. I'm thinking…," Blair glanced over at her shoulder at Kati and Iz, "Two, three?" At Kati and Iz's smirks and nods towards their Queen Blair turned back towards Penelope with a smile, "Yes, three weeks will do just fine.
"So, to recap, just to make sure everyone is on the same page," Blair starts as she turns and sits on the top step of the MET, "I am here, Kati and Iz are second," Blair waved them over, which they eagerly went to take their spots, "Jenny is third," she glanced over at Jenny, waiting for her to take her spot. The blonde looked between her and Penelope, obviously trying to decide her next move. "Jenny, I'm waiting," Blair called down to the freshman, patiently and smirked as Jenny moved up the steps and took her seat on the third step. "Thank you," Blair spoke lightly before she proceeded on.
"Then it's Elise and Hazel on fourth," she watched as they took their seats, "And finally on fifth is Penelope, for now." As Blair watched Penelope slowly take her seat at the bottom obviously not happy, but too scared to say anything else after what happened the last time she opened her mouth, but Blair caught the look of anger that Penelope threw at Jenny who now sat at what used to be her spot. Perfect.
"Yes, I think I like this arrangement very much. Let's eat girls," Blair smiled at Kati and Iz as they smiled back happily. Everything went according to plan; Jenny was in, but you know the saying "keep your friends close, and your enemies closer", and besides with Jenny's entrance it cost her a decent enough ally. Penelope would definitely think twice before stepping up for the freshman again. Blair had successfully secured her throne and rearranged her ranks accordingly to those who dared to question her and she couldn't have been happier.
As the conversation began to flow amongst the Constance's hierarchy, the group was interrupted by the king, Chuck Bass, "Pardon me ladies for interrupting," Chuck smirked as he took a seat beside Blair on the same step, holding her close as he sat a bag down that held their lunch.
Blair smiled and kissed her boyfriend happily on his lips, "I'm sure they won't mind, do you girls?" The girls shook their head quickly and continued on with their conversation, giving the couple the illusion of privacy as the pair talked, covertly watching as the King and Queen of school interacted, obviously not suffering at all after the gossip that spilled out yesterday. It was as if the two were indestructible, and it seemed that Hazel and Penelope forgot that you wouldn't want to mess with Blair Waldorf on a good day, let alone Chuck Bass and Blair Waldorf together.
After the group was finished with lunch, Chuck went off to class for the rest of the day with a loving kiss to his girlfriend before he left. Blair smiled happily as she dismissed the girls to go to class except for one, "Jenny? Can I speak with you for a moment?"
Jenny turned towards Blair warily as if she thought she got off scot free with her dealings, but Blair was more than happy to kill that thought as she spoke bluntly, "It is highly unlikely that I will ever forgive you for sending that tip to Gossip Girl and going to Nate, so enjoy today's victory and the spoils that go with it. But don't think that you're immune to my wrath with your new position; just ask Hazel and Penelope just how easy it is to fall from the ranks. So use this probationary period wisely, Little J." Blair smirked and walked pass the blonde freshman and walked down the steps to head back to school, her warning to Jenny still ringing in the freshman's ears. She had been warned; it wasn't Blair's style to not at least give someone a proper declaration of war.
One good scandal deserves another. Wonder who's going down next? Everybody if B. has anything to say about it.
x.o.x.o
Gossip Girl
A/N: Alright I feel that I should at least say that it is possible to still get your period while you're pregnant. I looked this up and everything! Lol Fortunately for Chair, they're not! What did you think of the meaning behind the cufflinks? I admit that I borrowed it from a fanfiction I read some time ago, so I can't take creative credit on that, but kudos to the idea!
So, what did you think of this chapter? I personally love it, but I'm a bit biased. Did you like how I changed some of the finer details? What about the attempted and failed dethroning of B? Personally the last scene was the most fun to write and I hope that I was able to explain the reasoning behind Blair's decisions. Don't fret though because the struggle between J and B is about to begin next chapter, but since B is still Queen it just has to be a bit sneakier. ;) Excited for the Blair bitch project episode? I know I am.
Would love to hear your thoughts on everything! What about the C and N face off and make up? Boys are so weird how they can go from one extreme to another… And the B and S fight with the eventual NJBC scene? Not to mention Blair telling Nate off! I personally never understood why he was such a dick about that. Especially when they were broken up! Unlike some other people in the relationship who slept someone's best friend...i'm just saying. I'm drooling to hear all about it!
9 more days of school for the semester and it seems that everyone is calling in on assignments. Fortunately for me and you all, I'm a few chapters ahead of schedule so it grants me a little breathing room and still maintain the posting schedule. But like all good things, I'm slowly creeping up to my last prewritten chapter! But don't worry, I'm a professional when it comes to working under pressure. ;)
See you next week!
-Plei4fun